5 Years to the Day
by Alyss Mainwaring
Summary: A special countdown. Val and Skulduggery are watching, waiting, as a new war is beginning.


**So I am doing a countdown for the last book. This is a mini series and can be read many ways. This one is number 5.**

**Ways to read them:**

**- Start at number 5 and read down.**

**- As separate pieces**

**- Start at number 1 and read up. **

**This of course is when they are all written and up :)**

**(And just a warning. I am an avid Valduggery supporter.)**

Skulduggery looked at the woman standing next to him. He had watched as she had transformed from a stumbling child into a confident, ass-kicking, woman. His love for her over time had only developed into something huge as well.

He had always admired her face in profile. The way her eyes, nose and mouth curved around captivated him were a welcome change after seeing his bones for a very long time. Her long eyelashes continuously captivated him every time they moved and he loved how she was just tall enough to fit into his arms. There were of course, always other people to relieve his long periods of a solitary, dead, life, but they didn't have the same brightness of youth that she somehow managed to continuously hold, and most of them had been through the first war as well and so had a certain hardness present in the lines of their faces.

It was a pity that all of the new faces of the current generation were going to be ruined by this war.

Skulduggery and Valkyrie were standing on top of a hill over looking a grassy plain. On the other side of this plain were red tents that held the enemy troops. Ironically, as Skulduggery always managed to mention, their side must have been that of the right. The blue tents up against the red.

This time as he looked over, Skulduggery had the ability of hindsight. The last war the magic community had been in had lasted a long time, and many good and innocent people were killed. He could tell simply by the way that the opening of the war had occurred that it wasn't going to be a short war. He could tell that it was going to be one of the longest ones that he had ever been in, and the odds of him being able to get through it only to see everyone else he cared about die were great. After all, he had survived the last one, and now there wasn't even his flesh to loose.

There had been other wars since, but they had been mortal and over in the blink of an eye all things considered. But this one wasn't going to 'be over by christmas', and it certainly wasn't going to be over in the remaing six years of this decade.

The woman next to him felt his invisible eyes and turned to face him.

"Staring again?" Val asked him.

"No. Why would I be doing that?" he replied, smiling invisibly.

She laughed and it was a stunning laugh. It lit up the sky for a moment and his existence appeared less bleak. It only lasted a second however before disappearing into a mesmerising, wistful smile.

"I do wish we had more time though," she commented.

"Why? To do the things we've already done?"

"No. Just to enjoy life to its fullest, you know."

"No. I don't. It has been a long time."

She looked at him scornfully. "Don't be smart," she scolded and true to the serious nature pressing upon them, he didn't comment like normal, on how the student usurped the teacher. He simply tilted his head at her and then turned again to look over the soon to be battle field.

"How do mortals not get suspicious at this?" she asked suddenly.

"We don't know. The last battle was a very long time ago and easily explained," he replied. "But enough sulking, however cute you might look whilst you are doing it."

She gave him a sideways grin. "And of course I am the prettiest person you know."

"I don't know, I might personally hold that award, but you are still in training, my young apprentice."

Valkyrie turned around, pretended to punch him then looked over at something else laughing.

"Who am I kidding," Skulduggery continued, "we all know that you are the prettiest. I can't even compare." This sent her blushing.

A horn sounded from somewhere else in the camp, signalling everyone to gather for dinner or else suffer and go without. Whilst Skulduggery knew he could afford to remain where he was and miss the meal, he also knew that the health of Valkyrie came before anything else in his life. The two of them turned around and started back down the hill, the sun beginning to set behind them.

There were 5 years to the day until they were gone.

**I feel as though the characters are really wrong… oh well…**

**I still managed to write this didn't I? :)**

**Look out for the next one tomorrow. (It will be as a separate one-shot not a continuation of this as I want to try and promote the whole, you are able to read it as a stand alone.)**

**:)**

**Aly**


End file.
